


is it best to sip it slowly or drink it down in one?

by hipgrab (merrymegtargaryen)



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Do not repost, F/M, Mostly Fluff, Rating will go up, and eventually some smut, destination wedding AU, except instead of hating each other they fall in love like immediately, zero plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-07
Updated: 2019-10-04
Packaged: 2020-10-12 00:57:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20555585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merrymegtargaryen/pseuds/hipgrab
Summary: His eyes flit over her screen, then widen.“You’re going to the Tico-Storm wedding?”She stares at him. “You are too?”“Unfortunately.” He winces. “I mean--”“No, no,” she hastens to assure him. “I’m pissed about it too.”He grins. “Yeah? Why’s that?”Rey’s smile is grim. “Because I was engaged to the groom and the bride was supposed to be my maid of honor before they told me that they’d fallen in love.”





	1. Friday

**Author's Note:**

> *rubs hands* WELCOME BACK
> 
> Okay, the thing about this fic is that I planned to write it as soon as I saw the trailer for Destination Wedding. But then I saw Destination Wedding and hated it, so I tried to do my own spin on it, but instead of Ben and Rey starting out disliking each other and then warming up, they pretty much are just nice to each other the whole time. What can I say?
> 
> Updates will probably be irregular; I'm currently out of a laptop and am relying on work computers, which are not always reliable anyway, so I crave your patience until I can actually get my hands on a working personal computer.

It takes every ounce of effort for Rey to get up that morning.

She doesn’t want to go to this wedding. Bad enough that she has to go at all, but for it to take up her entire weekend…

She checks and double-checks her luggage, and when she can delay no further, she starts to head out, pausing in front of her plants, where she exhales violently.

“Please live, please live, please live,” she chants, exhaling once more before exiting the apartment.

Maybe, she thinks hopefully, she’ll get struck by a car on the way to the airport. Even if it doesn’t outright kill her, the injury will be enough to prevent her from going to this stupid wedding. 

Maybe her flight will get cancelled. Or she won’t have a hotel reservation after all. Or maybe there was some grand mistake and she wasn’t invited after all. 

_ Please, whatever deity is out there, save me from this wedding _ .

It’s not as if she didn’t have a choice, because she absolutely did. She could have done the sensible thing and said no thank you, even if you both hadn’t ripped out my heart and stomped all over it, I am not blowing money on a fucking destination wedding, what do you take me for?

But she hadn’t. She’d accepted the invitation out of some mad desire to prove that she’s sane and well-adjusted after everything. Which, by the way, she definitely is not, but Finn and Rose don’t need to know that. 

Checking in at the airport goes smoothly, to her great displeasure. She browses the snack collection at the Hudson News in her terminal, settles on Bugles and an overpriced bottle of water, and then sits with a sigh at her gate.

It isn’t long before a tall man with dark, thick hair approaches her. “Excuse me, do you mind if I sit beside you and use the outlet?”

Rey looks down and sees that there is, indeed, an outlet at her knee. “Of course.”

“Thank you.” He sits beside her, plugging in his laptop. 

Rey scrolls through her phone and sighs. No notifications--as usual. Out of some sadistic desire to torment herself, she visits the wedding hashtag on instagram and is flooded with images of wedding prep and excited guests.

“Fuckers,” she grunts.

The man beside her gives her a strange look.

“Sorry,” she mutters. 

His eyes flit over her screen, then widen.

“You’re going to the Tico-Storm wedding?”

She stares at him. “You are too?”

“Unfortunately.” He winces. “I mean--”

“No, no,” she hastens to assure him. “I’m pissed about it too.”

He grins. “Yeah? Why’s that?”

Rey’s smile is grim. “Because I was engaged to the groom and the bride was supposed to be my maid of honor before they told me that they’d fallen in love.”

His grin fades. “Wait a second...you’re Rey?”

She makes a self-deprecating gesture. “That’s me.”

“Oh, shit.” He runs a hand through his hair. “I’m...so sorry.”

“Who are you, anyway?” she asks. “Not one of Finn or Rose’s friends?”

He shakes his head. “Nah, they both work for my mom, and since she can’t come, she sent me in her stead.”

Rey’s eyes widen. “You’re Ben?”

Now it’s his turn for the self-deprecating gesture. “That’s me.”

“Wow.”

“How do you know my mom?”

“I used to work for her too.” She takes a sip of her water. “That was how we all knew each other. But when Finn and Rose…I left the company.”

He nods. “Understandable. What do you do now?”

“I work for a tech startup, doing coding.”

“Sounds nice.” 

“It is,” she agrees. “Start-ups are all the rage now, have a lot of weird but nice perks. I miss Leia and Resistance, but…”

Ben nods. “I get that.”

“And you’re a...lawyer?” Rey tries to remember. 

He nods. “Corporate law.”

“Is that...interesting?”

“It can be...but usually no.” He closes his laptop. “Can I ask you something kind of personal?”

She shrugs. “Sure.”

“Why are you going to this wedding? I mean, what they did to you was totally unacceptable. If my fiancée and best friend did that to me…”

“I wasn’t planning to go, originally,” she admits. “But then I realized they probably only invited me as a formality and weren’t expecting me to accept, and it would ruin their wedding day if I showed up.” 

Ben looks impressed. “That’s...really brilliant, actually.”

She shrugs. “Plus I want them to know I’m like, okay. I was sort of...I sort of lost it last time I talked to them.”

“Understandable.”

“But still.”

“But still.”

They sit in companionable silence for a moment.

“Do you know Finn and Rose?” Rey asks when the silence stretches too long.

He shrugs. “A little. We met at one of my mom’s dinner parties not long after…” Not long after the breakup, he means. He clears his throat. “They seemed nice, but, uh…asinine?”

It floods Rey with satisfaction to hear the two of them referred to as “asinine”. “I see.”

“But I’ve also been told I’m an asshole, so I’m not sure how accurate that assessment is.”

“I hate them both, so I’m inclined to agree with your assessment.”

The gate attendant hops on the loudspeaker just then to let them know that boarding will begin momentarily.

“See you at dinner tonight,” Rey says with a genuine smile.

Ben smiles back. “Yeah, see you.”

He boards with Group 1, which is reserved for frequent fliers and gold members and the like. That doesn’t surprise Rey--as a corporate attorney, she imagines he gets lots of perks. She, on the other hand, boards with Group 5.

Her seat is near the front of the plane, just behind first class, and when she boards, she’s surprised to see that her seat is right next to Ben’s.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she laughs.

He shakes his head, smiling. 

Rey is relieved--she’s been dreading the flight, and at least this way she’ll have someone she likes with whom to pass the time. 

“I haven’t flown in a long time,” she admits. “I’m a little nervous.”

“It’ll be fine,” he assures her. “And if not, you can always drink the nerves away.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“When was the last time you flew?”

She thinks about it. “Erm, probably when I moved to the States, which was...seven? Eight years ago?”

“That is a long time,” he agrees. “Travel’s changed a lot since then.”

“I assumed it was an American thing, but I guess that makes sense.”

“What brought you over here?”

She shrugs, pretending to be interested in the flight attendant’s demonstration of safety procedures. “My foster father was...he wasn’t very nice. I wanted to get as far away from him as possible.”

“I’m sorry,” Ben says, truly sounding it.

She shrugs again. “It’s fine. I’m here now, and that’s the important thing.” She forces a smile, as if she’s a calm and well-adjusted adult having a pleasant conversation instead of trying to quash flashbacks of her traumatic upbringing. “What got you into corporate law?”

“I got my passion for justice and arguing from my mother, as you’ve probably noticed,” he says wryly. “But I wanted to take it a step further. I went to law school, and I had this mentor who took special interest in me. He encouraged me to pursue corporate law and governance because he believed it was my strong suit. He basically promised me an opening at his firm and put me on track to become a partner.”

“That was nice of him.”

He shakes his head. “He’s a prick. Found myself doing twice the work for half the reward, and the path to becoming a partner somehow got longer and longer. I finally left a couple years ago and started at a new firm.”

“I’m sorry,” she says softly.

“It’s okay--I’m just glad I got out of there.” 

The plane begins taxiing down the runway, picking up speed until it slants into the air. Rey looks out the window beside Ben, watching the ground grow smaller and smaller beneath them. 

“Oh,” she murmurs, leaning back into her seat.

He glances at her. “Nervous?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“In-flight service will start soon.”

“Mm.”

He shuts the window panel and turns to her. “So tell me the full story of this Finn and Rose debacle.”

Rey rolls her eyes. “Oh. That. Well.” She sighs. “So, Finn and I met while we were both interviewing for Resistance--they have these group interviews after the first in-person, you know? And we just. Hit it off right away. We started dating pretty soon after that. And then we met Rose, and she became my best friend. We did everything together. Between the two of them, I was never alone. It was the family I’d always wanted and never had.” She takes a deep breath. “Finn proposed with help from Rose--she’d gone with him to pick out the engagement ring, took me to the spot where he proposed, everything. I instantly made her my maid of honor. We were literally planning the wedding when she and Finn sat me down and told me that they’d fallen in love.”

“How?” Ben asks, brow furrowed.

She throws her hands in the air. “I don’t know! They said it had come out of the blue and they’d tried for so long to put away their feelings because they didn’t want to hurt me, but they couldn’t live a lie anymore.”

“That’s bullshit,” Ben says, unimpressed.

She nods. “Definitely. It...shocked me. I was so upset. I had a mental breakdown that lasted for three weeks. I called them horrible names, I kept calling their phones and leaving awful messages, I blasted them on social media. I lost a bunch of friends because they thought I was acting inappropriately.”

“How else are you supposed to act when your fiance and maid of honor tell you they’re in love?” he grumbles.

“Exactly! Exactly.” She shakes her head. “It took a lot of therapy sessions to finally calm down. Honestly, I was surprised they invited me at all. But like I said, I’m sure it was just to show that they don’t bear me any ill will and they’re good people or whatever and they weren’t expecting me to accept.”

“I’m glad you did--they should feel shitty for what they did.” He grins. “And how awkward it’s gonna be for everyone who knows what happened when they see you there.”

“Exactly.” She can’t help smiling at the thought. 

The flight attendant comes out with a drink cart and Rey realizes, startled, that she’s been too distracted to be nervous. She turns to Ben with an accusatory face. “You made me talk about Finn and Rose so I wouldn’t be nervous!”

“It worked, didn’t it?” he asks, grinning.

Rey orders a ginger ale, and on second thought, asks for a whiskey ginger. Ben orders the same, and the two clink plastic cups before drinking the amber liquid.

The alcohol helps settle Rey’s nerves even more, and she soon finds herself relaxing while chatting with Ben. She enjoys talking to him, in no small part because he’s the first friend she’s made in a long time who isn’t also friends with Finn and Rose. She doesn’t have to share him or lose him to them. 

She just hopes it stays that way.


	2. Friday Night

There’s a shuttle waiting for them when they land. It takes them to the hotel where Finn and Rose will be getting married, an upscale hotel that seems to be used predominantly for destination weddings such as this one.

Ben lets Rey register in front of him; once they’ve both gotten their room keys and welcome packages (“Are you fucking kidding me?” Rey mutters), they head up to the fourth floor.

“You’re on four too?”

“I am,” Ben confirms. “412.”

She stares at him. “I’m in 414.”

“Shut up.”

“No, look!” She holds out the envelope for her key card, on which the concierge has written  _ 414 _ .

“This is bizarre,” Ben says. “I mean, really bizarre.”

“It is,” Rey agrees. “Maybe we just happened to RSVP at the same time and this is where we fell on the list?”

“Maybe,” he says, but he doesn’t sound convinced. 

She points to her room. “I’m gonna go change before dinner--want to head down together?”

“Sure. Let’s say 6:15?”

“Sounds good to me.” 

She takes a quick shower, determined to look as well-put-together as possible before re-encountering Finn and Rose; while she’s waiting to dry, she sifts through the welcome package. It includes an itinerary and little goodies, and it takes most of her self-restraint not to dive right into the chocolate. It’s almost dinner time, and besides, she’ll probably want the chocolate on the wedding night when she’ll inevitably feel sorry for herself and cry.

She changes into a dress she bought especially for the occasion--a silky pink number that brings out her eyes, which she lines with makeup she doesn’t usually wear. She looks, if she says so herself, rather sexy. 

When she walks out of the room at 6:15, she sees Ben in the hallway, wearing a very nice suit and looking rather sexy himself. He whistles appreciatively when he sees her.

“Very nice choice,” he commends. 

“Yeah?” she asks, dimpling.

He nods, gazing at her. “Yeah. People will be expecting you to turn up in black or something dark, or something really muted, but they can’t ignore you in pink, and the pink makes you look...happy? Celebratory?”

“That’s  _ exactly _ what I was going for!” she says happily. 

“Well, it worked.” He holds out his arm. “Shall we?”

As Rey takes Ben’s arm, she can’t help noticing how firm it is. “Do you work out?” she blurts before she can really help it. 

“I do,” he says, looking rather pleased. “Does it show?”

“Yes.” She blushes. She hadn’t meant to sound like she was hitting on him...but is that such a bad thing? He’s handsome--she’d even go so far as to say that he’s sexy. And, as far as she’s aware, he’s as single as she is. So what if she hits on him? It’s a wedding--people hook up at those. Especially when the wedding is that of her ex-fiance and ex-best friend. She’d be justified in hitting on a kind, attractive man at that wedding, wouldn’t she?

_ You don’t even know if he likes you, and he’s probably just being nice to you because he feels bad for you, _ she reminds herself. That has to be it. He’s a corporate attorney--he could get anyone he wants. Why would he want her?

She’s thinking too hard about this. It’s not that complicated.

“You okay?” he asks as they get in the elevator. 

“Yes,” she says, startled out of her musings. “Why?”

“Your face looked...you looked upset.”

“Oh. Just. Thinking.”

“About seeing them again?”

She nods, grateful for the excuse. “Yes. I’m not...looking forward to it.”

“I get that.” He touches her arm. “Let me know if I can do anything.”

“Okay. Thanks,” she says, smiling.

Dinner is held outside on a secluded patio. Rey notices with chagrin that she has been placed at the table furthest from the bride and groom. 

Ben looks at the place setting beside hers. “You’re kidding.”

“No!”

He holds up the placard with his name on it. “This is  _ scary _ .”

“The plane, the hotel rooms, now this...and ten bucks says we’ll be sitting together at the wedding reception tomorrow.”

He takes his seat. “Do you think they’re doing this on purpose?”

“What, throwing us together?” She considers it as she takes her own seat. Would Finn and Rose do that? Maybe they were worried she’d cause a scene and be less inclined if there was an attractive male to distract her. “It’s possible.”

“It would explain the hotel rooms, and the table arrangement…”

“But not the airplane,” she points out. “That was pure serendipity.”

“Maybe this is serendipity too,” he says with a smile. “Maybe we were destined to spend this wedding together.”

“Poor you,” she laughs.

“What do you mean, poor me? I thought I’d hate this wedding, and so far, I’m having a good time.” He leans forward and murmurs, “Just because Finn and Rose were too stupid to appreciate you doesn’t mean I am.”

She doesn’t know what to say to that. It feels like one of the nicest compliments she’s ever received. It also makes her think that hitting on Ben--if she were to be so bold--might have a pretty nice outcome. 

Dinner is three courses, all served by uniformed hotel attendants who keep refreshing her glass of wine. She doesn’t mean to drink heavily, but as soon as she sees Finn and Rose kiss, she starts swigging.

Ben, thankfully, doesn’t comment on this. He doesn’t say much at all, in fact. Everyone else at their table is talking and laughing, but Rey and Ben have no interest in being part of the conversation.

As soon as the others get up to say hi to Finn and Rose, Rey turns to Ben.

“Who has a destination wedding, anyway?”

He smiles over the rim of his wine glass. “People who leaves their fiancées for her best friend.”

“Oh, right.” She watches the server refill her glass. “Do you think...I should say something to them?”

He considers. “I can’t tell if it would be more of a power move if you went to them or if they had to come to you.”

“Them coming here makes it seem like I’m avoiding them.”

He nods. “That’s a fair point. You should go to them.”

She takes a deep sip of her wine. “Okay. Here I go.” She gets up, walking with slow determination towards Finn and Rose. They see her coming about halfway there, both of them rooted to the spot with fixed smiles as Rey approaches them. 

“Hi!” she says far too cheerfully.

“Hi!” Rose says with an equal amount of forced cheerfulness, holding out her arms in a halfhearted gesture. The two women hug awkwardly.

“You look...amazing,” Rose says honestly.

“Thanks, so do you.” Rey’s eyes flit to Finn, but this becomes too painful, so she turns her attention back to Rose. “Thanks for...inviting me.”

“Of course!” Rose squeaks. “Of course.” 

Rey clears her throat. “Well. I’m sure you have lots of guests to...attend to.” She tries not to visibly wince at the archaic phrase. “I’ll, um, see you around.”

“Yeah, see you,” Rose says enthusiastically. 

Rey walks as calmly as she’s able back to the table. She sinks into her chair, exhaling.

“As bad as you imagined?” Ben asks.

“It was both better and worse.” She drinks heavily from her glass. “Better because I didn’t cry or scream or have a mental breakdown. Worse because Rose and I were so fake and I couldn’t even look at Finn.”

“The fact that you approached them at all has what I believe the kids call ‘Big Dick Energy’.”

Rey actually snorts into her wine glass. “Oh my god.” A sudden thought occurs to her. “Do you...have any kids?” She doesn’t think Leia mentioned any grandkids, but you never know.

He looks surprised. “Me? No. No, no kids, no partner, not even a pet. I had a bonsai tree but I killed it.”

“Oof.”

“Yeah.” He glances at her. “What about you?”

“Same, including the dead plants. I’m getting better at it, though.” She pushes around her silverware. “Do you think...anyone would miss me if I went back to my room?”

He glances around the room. “No.” 

She nods. “Good. I’ll be doing that, then.” She gets up and heads back to her room, feeling drunk and stupid. Why had she come to this dumb wedding?

She takes off her makeup and changes into her pajamas--a ratty old t-shirt and leggings. Impressive as she wants to appear in front of Finn and Rose, she has no such need in the privacy of her hotel room. At last, she can relax--and if she happens to cry a little, that’s okay.

She’s watching a rerun of  _ Friends _ when a knock comes on her door. Curious, she pads to the door and peers out of the peephole. 

It’s Ben, still wearing his suit. She steps back and opens the door. “Hey.”

“Hey.” She doesn’t miss the way he takes in her slovenly appearance, and she tries not to feel too self-conscious about it. “I just wanted to check on you and make sure you’re okay.”

“Me? I’m fine,” she says, surprised and not a little touched.

He nods. “Okay, good. I just. I was worried after you left.”

“That’s nice of you.”

He shrugs. 

She hesitates. “Do...you...want to come in?”

He looks surprised. “Uh...sure.”

She steps back to let him in, closing the door behind him. “I’m just watching  _ Friends _ , but I was thinking about breaking into the welcome basket.”

“Oh, fuck, yeah,” he says, sitting on the bed. She grabs the welcome basket and rifles through it for the goodies. 

“Thank god for this, because the minibar situation looks expensive.”

“It always is,” he agrees. “It’s like eighty cents per cashew.”

She spreads the treats out on the bed for them to nosh. 

“I can’t even imagine going to my ex’s wedding,” he says, ripping open a packet of nuts. “Not that I have any to speak of.”

“None?” she asks in surprise.

He shakes his head. “I was too career-driven at the old firm, and at the new one...I don’t know.”

“A handsome guy like you?”

Is he blushing, or is that just the TV? 

“Do you  _ want _ to date?” she asks.

He shrugs. “Yeah. But I feel...I don’t know. Weird and wrong.”

“I don’t think you’re weird and wrong.”

“You barely know me.”

“I know you’re not weird and wrong,” she says stubbornly.

“Then why is it I’m alone all the time?”

Rey doesn’t have an answer to that.

“But seriously,” Ben asks after a long moment. “Are you okay?”

She sighs, setting aside her pretzels. “Yeah. I...I’ve been struggling a lot since the breakup. I have this fear of dying alone, which...I’m not proud of, but.” She shrugs. “It’s there. I have abandonment issues, and when the breakup happened...I’d never felt more alone.”

“You’re not alone,” he says softly.

“Neither are you,” she says just as softly. Slowly, she reaches out to touch his hand.

Ben holds her gaze, his fingertips brushing hers. It’s one of the most intimate moments Rey has ever experienced. She wonders if Ben is going to kiss her.

He doesn’t, though, because his cell phone vibrates loudly from his pocket. He swears, reaching for the thing before swiping to answer.

“What is it, Uncle Luke?” He gets up, pacing around the room.

Rey mutes the TV so he can hear his uncle and then turns to her own phone, trying not to eavesdrop. Ben sounds irritated, so she absorbs herself in scrolling through facebook and instagram. 

It’s several minutes later when he hangs up with an apologetic smile. “Sorry. My uncle. He doesn’t understand...boundaries.”

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, everything’s fine, I just have to do some minor damage control.”

Rey feels her heart sink at the realization that he’s going to leave. “Oh, okay.”

“I’ll see you at breakfast tomorrow?” he asks, and she realizes he sounds hopeful.

“Yeah. Breakfast.” She smiles at him.

Ben smiles back before turning and leaving the room.

Maybe this wedding won’t be so bad after all.


	3. Saturday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the good news is, I have a laptop! The bad news is that a friend gave it to me for free because it's really old and slow as molasses. So, because I don't have two hours to spend waiting for google docs to open, I'm gonna continue using work computers to update, so updates will still be a little sporadic, but I'll try to never make you wait longer than a week!

Rey wakes up with a headache she knows is from the wine. She feels greasy, too, as she always does during a hangover. It takes the combined efforts of brushing her teeth, showering, washing her face, and popping a few Ibuprofen to make the hangover fade--the final step is to eat.

She meets Ben downstairs, already in line at the breakfast buffet. She loads up on the free food before retreating to a table with him.

He watches her eat with amusement. “Hungry?”

“Always,” she confirms. “How was damage control?”

He rolls his eyes. “Fine. It’s weird, to be the most responsible person in my family. I do so much work for my mom and uncle that they joke about hiring me full-time.”

“Why don’t they?”

“I ask them not to.” He smiles wryly. “I don’t want to work for my family, that seems...eh. You know.”

“Yeah.” She doesn’t know, not really, because she’s never had any family. She supposes he finds it embarrassing, the idea of calling his mother his boss.

“My dad...he passed away a few years ago,” Ben says suddenly.

Rey nods. “I heard. I’m sorry.”

He shakes his head. “It...we were never close. But he left a lot of debts that my mother never even knew about. People started coming out of the woodwork to demand she pay them back. She almost lost the company.”

“I didn’t know that,” Rey says, surprised.

Ben has a grim look on his face. “Yeah, well, she made sure no one at the company knew. My uncle and I had to help her get these debts squared away, but it’s a never-ending problem. It’s coming out of her retirement fund and my inheritance--which is fine, I don’t need an inheritance, but it’s been hard for her.”

“I’m so sorry. For all of you,” she says sincerely.

He shakes his head. “It’s fine. It’s...being handled.” He forces a smile. “So, ready for the winery tours?”

“Who schedules a winery tour at eleven in the morning?” she complains, accepting the change of subject. 

“Tacky people.”

“Clearly.” She chews her bacon. “Wish it was later--then I could be nice and knackered for the wedding.”

“No one’s stopping you from getting knackered anyway.”

“Hmm, that’s true.”

.

At ten-thirty, Rey and Ben join the other guests in shuttles that carry them to their first stop on the winery tour. Rey tries a few different wines before settling on a glass of Riesling; Ben gets a Merlot. They stand near the back, watching everyone else try all the different kinds of wines and ask inane questions about the wine making process. Finn and Rose are, thankfully, not amongst the guests; they are with their respective wedding parties, getting ready for the ceremony. Rey has already seen Rose’s instagram story, which is full of pictures of mani-pedis, complete with matching robes for her and her bridesmaids.

It’s sickening.

One of the guests wanders over to Rey and Ben, smiling. “Bride or groom?”

“Both,” Rey says, trying to look pleasant instead of pained.

“I don’t really know either one,” Ben admits.

The woman’s smile widens. “And how long have you two been together?”

Rey chokes on her Riesling. “Uh--”

“Just a few weeks,” Ben says, wrapping an arm around her. 

“How sweet!” the woman says. “Still in that honeymoon phase, huh?”

“The best,” he says, stroking Rey’s back. It feels incredibly nice. She imagines being in a honeymoon phase with Ben, all giggly and cuddly. It sends a thrill down her spine. 

“Enjoy the wedding,” the woman says before moving anyway. 

Rey raises her eyebrows at Ben when the other woman walks away. “We’re together now, are we?”

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist,” he says, removing his arm. “Does it bother you?”

She considers it. “No.”

“Good.” He returns his arm to her shoulders. “Maybe Finn will see and get jealous.”

“I seriously doubt that...but it’s a nice thought.”

When they finish the tour of the first winery, everyone packs into the shuttles and trundles off to the second stop. They have a catered lunch here along with a couple more glasses of wine, and then it’s off to the third and final stop. It’s early afternoon now, and by Rey’s estimate, they’ll have a couple hours once they get back to the hotel to sober up and head to the wedding.

She’s on her fourth glass of the day and definitely feeling it. Ben takes one look at her and says, “We’re going on a walk,” placing one massive hand on her back to steer her outside.

“I’m not that drunk,” she insists. 

“You’re drunk, though, and you don’t want to get sloppy before the wedding’s even started. You’re trying to impress everyone, remember?”

He’s right, and Rey feels a flash of resentment at her own idiocy. “Right.”

“Plus, I just wanted an excuse to get out of there,” he admits. “It’s so boring. When you’ve seen one winery, you’ve seen them all, you know?”

“Definitely,” she agrees, following him to the vineyard. 

He glances at her. “How are you doing?”

“Drunk, according to you.”

“I mean, what is your emotional state at this moment?”

She considers his question. “I’m fine, I think? I just want to get this afternoon over with.”

“That’s understandable,” he says with a nod. “I do, too. I want to get this entire trip over with so I can go home.”

“Me too,” she agrees. “I hope my plants are okay.”

“I would say I’m sure they’re fine, but since you are a self-acknowledged plant-killer…”

“You’re right, they’re probably dead.” She touches some of the vines. “Maybe I’ll learn to grow grapes.”

“And make your own wine?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“I think that’s kind of a laborious process. I mean, that’s what I’m gathering from all these wineries.”

“The only thing I’ve gathered is that...I’m drunk.”

“Very astute.”

She smiles up at him. “I’m glad I met you.”

His face softens. “I’m glad I met you too.”

“I thought I’d be miserable all weekend, but I’m having a good time because of you.” She doesn’t know why she’s being so candid, except...yes, it’s definitely the wine. She feels herself talking, unable to stop. “Will you hang out with me at the wedding so I won’t be alone?”

“I’d never leave you alone,” he says tenderly, pushing her hair behind her ear.

Rey wants to kiss him, and she’s pretty sure Ben wants to kiss her too. She read young adult fiction growing up, she knows what it means when a guy pushes your hair behind your ear and tells you he’ll never leave you alone. 

For a moment, she really thinks he’s going to kiss her, the way he’s leaning in, his eyes intent on hers.

But then he pulls back. 

“We should probably get back,” he says.

Rey tries not to show her disappointment. “Yeah, probably.” 

They walk up the hill to the winery, but on the way, Rey stumbles on the slope, losing her shoe. 

“Whoops!” 

Ben kneels down, reaching for her shoe. Rey grasps his shoulder so she won’t fall, watching as he slides her shoe back onto her foot.

“Come on, Cinderella,” he says, standing up. He swings her up into his arms easily, carrying her bridal-style up the hill. Rey winds her arms around his neck, oddly breathless.

The rest of the group is just now exiting the winery, making their way to the vans. 

The woman from before smiles at them. “Young love,” she says fondly.

In a rare burst of boldness, Rey kisses Ben’s cheek. 

His blush is the cutest thing she’s ever seen.


	4. Saturday Afternoon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost there!
> 
> The plot actually wraps up in this chapter; next chapter is just. Well. You know how I said the rating will go up? ;) (Actually the rating will probably stay the same and I'll just mark next chapter as rated M)
> 
> Enjoy!

The two hours between the winery tour and the wedding is just enough for Rey to mostly sober up, much to her displeasure. She considers drinking before the wedding, just to make sure she enjoys it, but then decides that Ben is right--she  _ does _ want to impress everyone, and showing up drunk won’t do her any favors. If anything, people will just whisper behind her back and say that she’s so distraught she couldn’t get through the ceremony without alcohol, they’ll say she’s gone off the deep end, etc. So she sobers up, even taking care to shower again so that she’ll be fresh for the wedding.

Rey spends an inordinate amount of time on her hair and makeup, wanting to look perfect, because she knows how many eyes will be on her. When she’s finally satisfied with the results--hair smooth and styled, makeup complimentary but not too heavy--she changes into her dress.

It’s unlike the dresses she normally wears, and indeed, she bought it just for the wedding. It’s shorter than what she’s normally comfortable with, falling to mid-thigh. It’s form-fitting, hugging her body in a way that makes it look like she has curves. The turquoise material is thick enough that it won’t wrinkle or show sweat stains, but the best part about the dress is the lace paneling on the chest and on the slits up the side of the dress. The slits are so high as to be nearly scandalous, but because of the matching lace, it looks tasteful rather than tasteless. 

She doesn’t wear any jewelry, deeming that too much, so as soon as she slips into her heels, she’s ready to go.

Ben knocks on her door at 3:30, the time they’d agreed to head down to the wedding together. He’s wearing another suit, and Rey really can’t help thinking that he’s one of the few men who can actually pull off a suit. She also can’t help thinking about earlier in the day when they’d almost kissed in the vineyard. 

But had they almost kissed? Or was that simply her imagination?

His eyes nearly bug out as he takes her in.

“Whoa.”

“Yeah?” she asks a little nervously. She’s never worn a dress like this before, and she isn’t entirely sure if it suits her.

He nods vigorously. “Oh yeah.”

She grins, grabbing her clutch. “Well, shall we head down?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The wedding is being held in one of the private events rooms. Rey is glad that Finn and Rose have had the sense to hold an indoor wedding. She remembers an outdoor wedding they’d all gone to and how they’d all hated it, complaining the entire way home about the heat. The three of them had sweat through their clothes, downing lemonade to keep cool as they danced. The memory hurts, so Rey tries to turn her attention to the decorations and the layout. She and Ben elect to sit on Rose’s side near the back.

They wait for what feels like a long time, the chatter of the guests around them becoming restless.

Ben glances at his watch and frowns. “It’s well after four.”

“I wonder what the hold-up is,” Rey says vaguely. 

Rose’s sister, Paige, comes out of the back, leaning over Ben to talk to Rey. 

“Can you come with me?” she asks quietly.

Rey stares at her. “What?”

“Can you come with me?” Paige repeats. “Rose is freaking out and no one can calm her down.”

Rey feels her spine stiffen. “I don’t really see what that has to do with me.”

“She’s asking for you,” Paige says with a note of desperation. “Rey, I’ve never seen her like this. Please just...just come see her before we have to ask the hotel to give her a sedative.”

Rose is not an anxious person, which is how Rey knows this is bad. She glances at Ben, who shrugs.

“Okay,” she says, getting up and sliding past him. She follows Paige to an antechamber, where Rose is sitting on the floor in a most undignified fashion, mascara running down her face. The other bridesmaids all look nervously at Rey, but Paige shoos them from the room, closing the door to leave the two women alone.

Rey turns back to Rose. “Uh...what’s up?”

“I can’t do this!” Rose blurts. “I can’t get  _ married _ !”

Rey sighs, kneeling beside her former friend. “Why not?”

“It’s happening so fast!” Rose sobs. “I mean, like, one second we were dating, and the next, we were engaged! Do you know we’d only been together for eight months when he proposed? Eight months! That’s not enough time to know if you want to marry someone or not!”

Rey is both surprised and vindicated at this outburst. “I thought you guys were soulmates.”

Rose cries even harder. Rey takes pity on her, sitting uncomfortably beside the other woman. “Hey...what’s really going on? Don’t you love Finn?”

“I do, but…” Rose shakes her head. “This is too  _ soon _ . We barely got to figure each other out before we were getting ready to get married. It just. It feels like it was all leading up to this.” She wipes her nose. “It was like...we’d broken your heart, so we had to make it worth it, you know? So we had to get married.”

Rey feels an odd pang for Rose. “Are you saying you wanted to get married to justify hurting me?”

“Sort of?” Rose squeaks. “Like. If we were going to hurt you and lose you forever, we’d better be really and truly in love. And we are, but we had to like. Get married to show everyone.”

“I see.” Rey’s head thumps back against the wall. “And now you don’t want to get married.”

“Not yet! Maybe in a year or two, but not a year after we got together.” She hesitates, and then reaches for Rey’s hand. “It’s been a rough year without you.”

“Not my fault,” Rey reminds her, but she doesn’t pull her hand away.

“You’re my best friend,” Rose says quietly. “You still are. And living without you...has been hard. Every morning I wake up and look at Finn and think,  _ I lost my best friend to you _ .”

“Don’t try to make me feel sorry for you,” Rey snaps, shaken by this admission. “You had a choice.”

“We did,” Rose acknowledges. “We could have not said anything, and lived the rest of our lives knowing Finn and I were in love but didn’t want to hurt you. It would ruin your marriage. If you had kids…” Her voice catches. “We thought it would be better to tell you then and let you go.”

“How generous,” Rey says, but it isn’t as biting as she means it to be. 

Rose squeezes her hand. “Please believe me when I say that I didn’t want to hurt you. I felt awful for so long because I was in love with your fiance and I knew he loved me back. I felt like a horrible person. I went to therapy for it. I could barely eat. And as the wedding got closer, I realized...it wasn’t fair to you. I wasn’t doing you any favors by keeping this giant secret. It would come out eventually and you’d be hurt then, or I’d start to resent you and it would ruin our friendship.”

“We always said we’d never choose a boy over each other,” Rey says quietly, tears forming in her eyes.

“Rey, believe me, I wasn’t just choosing Finn, I was choosing you. I was trying to do the right thing for you. I didn’t care if it hurt me or Finn, as long as we did right by you.”

Rey wants to be angry at Rose, wants to tell her she broke her heart and made her miserable. 

But she isn’t angry or miserable right now. She’s just sad for Rose.

“What would you do if I wasn’t in the equation?” she asks.

Rose shakes her head. “Wait a year or two or even three to get married.”

“So do that.”

Rose looks at her sharply. “What?”

“Don’t get married,” Rey says simply. “You don’t want to. You’re not ready. And you’ll just resent Finn if you get married now. You have to let it grow until it feels like the right time.” She reaches over, brushing away some tears. “You should be happy on your wedding day. This...isn’t happy.”

Rose gives her a sad smile. “I can’t call off the wedding  _ now _ .”

“Yes you can,” Rey says firmly. “People call off weddings the day of all the time.”

Rose bites her lip, smearing her lipstick. “I want to talk to Finn.”

Rey gets up, going to the door. Paige and the other bridesmaids are all clustered in the hallway, visibly panicking; they look up like deer in headlights when Rey opens the door.

“Get Finn,” she orders, and Paige trots off to grab him. He appears a moment later, eyes wide. 

“What’s going on?”

Rey points inside the room. “Talk to Rose.”

She waits outside with the others while Finn and Rose talk. What they say, she doesn’t know, but when Finn walks out, it’s with a somber expression. 

“We’re calling it off.”

“What?!” two of the bridesmaids shriek.

He winces. “It’s just...not the right time.”

“Well, who’s going to tell all those people?” another bridesmaid asks shrilly.

“I’ll do it,” Rey says before she can stop herself.

All eyes turn to her.

She shrugs. “I’ll do it. If you want,” she amends, turning to Finn.

He looks surprised but nods. “Yeah. Yes. Please.”

Rey squares her shoulders and marches down the aisle. Funny, she thinks, as all eyes turn to her--one year later, and she’s finally walking down the aisle.

She stands at the altar, forcing a smile on her face. “Everyone, can I have your attention please?” she calls, and the hubbub dies down. “I’m afraid I have some bad news--the wedding is postponed indefinitely.”

Instantly, the room erupts in chatter. Rey waves her hands to silence them. “I know this is very, very last minute, but some unavoidable things came up and the bride and groom have unanimously decided to hold off until a later date. They’re so sorry for the inconvenience, but they invite you to enjoy the reception and the rest of your stay.” She’s bullshitting that last part, but she highly doubts Finn and Rose are going to object. 

There’s lots of complaining and shouting from the guests, but Rey doesn’t care enough to answer them. She walks back down the aisle towards Ben. 

His eyebrows are raised. “What was that?”

“Rose isn’t ready to get married,” Rey says lightly. “And neither, I bet, is Finn. So they’re calling it off for now.”

“Just for now?” 

“Who knows?” Rey shrugs. 

“Are you...okay?”

“Weirdly...yes. I feel like...I have closure. Like. Now I understand a bit more and I’m...calm.” She shrugs again. “So yeah. I’m okay. I’m more than okay. I’m good. And I’m ready to enjoy this fuckin’ reception.”

Ben looks bemused. “Well. If you insist.”

“I do.” She takes his hand, tugging him to his feet. “Now let’s go dance and drink and have a good time at Finn and Rose’s not-wedding.”

He laughs, following her to the ballroom. “As you wish.”

.

The reception is awkward without either the bride or groom present, and especially with there having been no wedding. Many of the guests leave, angry at the turn of events. The others pop open the champagne and dance to the upbeat, happy music. 

Rey dances with Ben, feeling happy and bubbly even without the champagne. Neither of them are very good at dancing, which makes it even more fun. Best of all is when the DJ plays the obligatory “Shout!”, to which Rey and Ben dance with far more vigor than is appropriate.

When the song is over, Paige approaches Rey again. 

“I’m sorry--can you talk to Finn and Rose again? Just for a minute.”

“Sure.” Rey glances at Ben. “I’ll be back.”

He nods. “I’ll be waiting.”

She follows Paige to the room where she’d left Finn and Rose earlier. Rose is still wearing her wedding dress, but the mascara has been cleaned from her face. Finn has taken off his jacket and cummerbund, hands in his pockets. They are, thankfully, smiling.

Rose comes forward, taking Rey’s hands. “Thank you so much. You were right--I would have grown to resent Finn if we’d gotten married today. If it hadn’t been for you, I would’ve made a huge mistake. And you didn’t have to come back and check on me--you didn’t even have to come to this wedding. But you did.”

“I still care about you,” Rey says softly. 

“I meant it when I said you’re still my best friend.” Rose bites her lip. “Maybe...when we get married for real...you’ll be my maid of honor? If that’s not too much to ask?”

Rey smiles. “Yeah. Maybe.” She glances at Finn. “So what are you guys going to do?”

“We’re going to take some time to figure things out,” he says. 

“Can we be friends again?” Rose pleads. “I know you can probably never forgive us, and I totally understand if you don’t want--”

“I do,” Rey says, because it’s the truth. She takes a deep breath. “I want to be friends with you again. Best friends.” She looks back at Finn. “And you. I still...I still love you, even if I don’t want to be with you anymore. You both mean more to me than you know.” 

Rose lets out a small sob and throws her arms around Rey. Rey hugs her back, squeezing the smaller woman. After a long moment she pulls back and then hugs Finn. 

“So are you still going on the honeymoon?” Rey asks, wiping her eyes. 

“We’re letting my parents go on it since they paid for most of this,” Rose says guiltily. “It’s our sort of apology.”

“Good apology.” Rey hugs Rose again. “Let’s hang out soon.”

“Yeah,” Rose says shyly.

“I’ve got a hot date waiting for me, so I’m gonna go,” Rey says. 

Their eyes widen. 

“A hot date?!”

“Yep,” Rey says with a wicked grin. She waves and then heads back to the reception, smiling. 

Ben is, true to his word, waiting for her, hands in his pockets as he stands near the door. He straightens up when he sees her. 

“Everything okay?”

She nods. “Everything’s fine.” She goes back out to the dance floor, Ben following her.

“What happened?”

“Nothing,” she says honestly. “I mean. We decided to be friends again.”

He raises his eyebrows. “You decided to be friends again?”

“Yeah, I mean.” She shrugs. “I get why they did it. And it hurt a lot, and it still kind of hurts, but I’m over it.”

“You’re  _ over _ it?” he repeats disbelievingly.

“Yeah. I’ve had the closure I needed.” She peers up at him. “You don’t look like you believe me.”

He won’t meet her eyes. “Are you sure it isn’t just that...Finn realized he’s still in love with you or something?”

“ _ What _ ?” she asks, laughing in disbelief. “He’s not still in love with me. And I’m not still in love with him.”

Relief washes over Ben’s face. “Oh. Okay. Because I thought...I don’t know…”

Rey’s mouth falls open. “Did you...were you  _ jealous _ ?”

“Yes,” he says, his face pink but determined. “I was jealous of Finn. Because in the last...fuck, the last twenty four hours, I’ve gotten to know you, and I...I really like you, Rey. A lot. I’ve never opened up to someone the way I’ve opened up to you.” He runs a hand through his hair. “I was afraid...Finn would want you back, or you were still in love with him, or--”

Rey puts a finger on his lips. “I like you too,” she says softly. “And I’m not in love with Finn and he doesn’t want me back and I don’t  _ want _ him to want me back. I just want...you.”

Ben swallows. “Just me?”

“Just you,” she agrees. 

He releases a shaky breath. “Can I kiss you?”

“Please,” she invites, moving closer.

He leans down, his lips brushing hers. Rey winds her arms around his neck, grateful for her heels as she deepens the kiss. Ben’s hands hover at her waist, his heart pounding against hers. Rey bites his plush lips, grinning against his mouth when he groans. 

“Minx,” he murmurs, one hand grazing her bottom.

“No one’s ever called me that before,” she admits, enjoying the sensation of his hand on her bottom.

“You are. A minx,” he tells her, and now he’s the one biting her lip. “I’m torn between taking you up to my room and making tender love to you and pulling you into the nearest bathroom or closet or relatively private alcove and fucking you senseless.”

Rey’s breath catches. “I’ve never been fucked senseless before, either.”

Ben closes his eyes for a minute. “Fuck. I’m. So hard already.”

Rey glances down and sees that he is, indeed, tenting his pants. “I want you to fuck me senseless,” she breathes, hand trailing down his chest. “I want you to fuck me until I forget my own name. I want to come so hard I see stars.” She places a kiss, feather-light, on his jaw. “Think you can manage that?”

Ben grabs her hand and all but drags her out of the room. 


	5. Saturday Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTER IS RATED M, proceed accordingly!

It’s true that she’s never been fucked senseless. Finn was a generous lover, but he would never do anything remotely like fucking her senseless. She hadn’t minded--she’d enjoyed their sex and had believed it was a mark of how much Finn respected her that their lovemaking was gentle and soft.

And as much as she enjoys gentle and soft lovemaking, she has to admit to intrigue and exhilaration at the prospect of being fucked senseless. She wants Ben to put his massive hands on her, to hold her in place as he uses his cock on her. She wants to be filled by him, to be able to do nothing but cling to him as he has his way with her. She’s never wanted anything like that before, but today, she does.

They find a family restroom, locking the door before putting their hands all over each other. Ben kneads her ass, his fingers long enough that they brush the skin beneath the hem of her dress. She unbuckles his belt, reaching inside to tease him out of his pants. His cock is massive, and greedily, Rey thinks of it filling her.

“I don’t have a condom,” he warns.

“I’m on birth control,” she tells him. “And I’m clean.”

“So am I.” He kisses her, slanting his mouth against hers. Rey lets him back her against the wall, and then he presses his palms to the underside of her thighs, lifting her up to his waist. She wraps her legs instinctively around him, her short dress pushed up around her hips. She can feel him pressed against her underwear, pressed against her center; when she rolls her hips, she rubs herself against him. Ben rolls his hips, too, both of them thrusting lightly as they work each other up.

When Rey is so wet she can’t stand it anymore, she reaches down, pushing her underwear to the side. “Please,” she asks breathlessly. 

Ben guides his cock to her center, pushing slowly. 

As wet and as aroused as she is, it’s still a tight fit. Ben has to work himself inside inch by inch, kissing her tenderly as he goes. She moans helplessly, clinging to his shoulders as he fills her. 

When he’s seated fully inside her, he holds still for a long moment, letting her adjust. Then, he pulls back and thrusts back inside her. He goes slow at first, letting Rey’s walls stretch around him; when it becomes less of a tight squeeze and he can slide with relative ease in and out, he picks up the pace. 

Rey is a mess, head lolling and lips parted. Ben kisses and bites her neck, his hands holding her hips in place as he thrusts into her. It feels so good, so unbelievably, indescribably good, and it feels even better when he thrusts even faster and harder, hips snapping into hers with an almost bruising force. She can only whimper in desperation, fingers curled in his hair.

Her orgasm hits her like a ton of bricks. She’s dimly aware of shouting, her legs squeezing his hips as she clenches down on his cock. Ben’s thrusts come impossibly fast and impossibly hard, and when she comes down from her high, she realizes that he’s come, too.

They stay there for a long moment, Ben inside her, Rey still pressed against the wall. After a moment, she begins to giggle.

“What?” he asks, pulling back to look at her.

She shakes her head, grinning. “Nothing, I just...wow. That was...wow.”

He grins back. “Yeah. Wow.”

“Let’s go up to my room,” she suggests.

He kisses her neck. “Yes.” 

.

All the way up to Rey’s room, they can’t stop touching each other, hands roaming and mouths kissing. She barely remembers using her keycard to get in her room; all she does remember is Ben backing her against the door after she’s closed it, his teeth scraping her neck. He reaches down, hands tugging at her underwear and pulling them down her legs. She steps out of the damp material, and no sooner has she done so than Ben lifts her again, her legs around his hips. He fumbles to free himself, his cock already hard again, and then he’s pushing inside her again, filling her with his girth. She sighs contentedly, peppering kisses all over his face as he begins to thrust. 

“I meant to get to the bed,” he pants, still thrusting. “But I had to get inside you as soon as possible.”

“I’m glad,” she gasps, toying with the hair at the nape of his neck. 

His thrusts become harder, more determined, and dimly, Rey is aware of the door bouncing slightly in its hinges. Anyone walking by right now would definitely be able to hear the thumping. That thought arouses her more than it should. When she comes, she moans loudly into his shoulder, her chest heaving as her breath shortens.

Still holding her, Ben carries her to the bed, where he leans over her as he continues thrusting, filling and fucking her. She strokes his face, angling her hips to take him deeper. He’s panting hard, and when he finally bows his head, groaning into her ear, she smiles.

.

Ben is a cuddler. Rey wouldn’t have guessed, especially given how hard he’d fucked her, but he holds her for a long time after, stroking her hair and back and nuzzling her neck and nose. It only stops when she insists on getting up so she can shimmy out of her dress. He takes off his clothes too, and then he’s pulling her to him again, kissing his way all over her bare skin. 

“No more,” she groans. “I’m sore.”

“Sorry,” he says with a shy grin. “I just can’t stop touching you.”

“I’ve noticed,” she says wryly. 

“Is it too much?”

“Nah.” She shakes her head. “I like it.”

He pushes her hair behind her ears, his eyes on hers. “God, you’re beautiful.”

“Shut up,” she says, but she’s smiling.

“You are.” He kisses her nose again. “If I was engaged to you, I’d never let you go.”

She doesn’t know what to say to that, but she doesn’t have to say anything; Ben seems content to just hold her. 

.

Rey wakes up against Ben’s chest. She realizes that she must have dozed off, and no wonder--the way he’d been stroking her back had been positively divine. His hand is still at her back, but it’s still; upon further examination, she realizes that he’s asleep, too. 

She glances at the bedside clock and sees that it’s one in the morning. She shifts against Ben, trying to fall back asleep, but her movement seems to have woken him.

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” He stretches. “Everything okay?” 

“Yeah, just woke up.” She bites her lip, looking up at him. “Is it clingy if I ask what happens after this?”

“Is it clingy if I say I want to see you again?”

She smiles. “Probably, but as we’ve established, I like that you’re clingy.”

“Thank god.” He strokes her hair. “I have no idea what I’m doing, but...I want to see you. A lot, if possible.”

“I’d like that.”

In the morning, they’ll eat together at the farewell brunch. Maybe they’ll be lucky enough to sit next to each other on the plane again. And after that…

After that, Rey has big plans. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so much for reading this! Your comments have absolutely made my day and I can't thank you enough <3
> 
> Those of you who have followed me for a while now will know that I've already got another fic lined up for next week, and I'll give you a hint of what it's about: Splash ;)


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